A pilgrimage across southern England

[Reg Dingle]

^^Aaand Reg notches the tap in.

A-hay

the outrageous cost of parking, this was definitely one of the considerations when I decided not to hire a car on my recent visit.

10 pounds a day is outrageous?
You couldn't get 4 flake 99s for that.

[Shutree]

10 pounds a day is outrageous?
You couldn't get 4 flake 99s for that.

Or 2 pints of best.

[BLD]

Thread keeps getting better and better!

Indeed. Digging it

[Edmond]

You get a headjob for that round h..... Khorat. So I was told.

[BLD]

Thread keeps getting better and better!

Looks like you guys are having a wonderful time. The British coastal towns are seriously underrated in my view, it is a shame, in normal times, that so many people choose to go abroad and to never see so many places in our homeland. Glad you guys are tucking into some proper grub and those '99p' flakes look amazing but I am sure no where near 99p! parking is a bit of a fraud, we pay taxes already don't we? Try the costs in London, some paring lots in London are 10 or 20 quid an hr.

Attachment 89994

Next Bond maybe?

This whole covid thing where people couldn't leave the country fir the last 2 .5 years or more has sparked a keen interest in caravanning camping etc. It's not cheap though a 4wd is needed then a caravan fuck me they are out there spending money . But it's a probably a good thing for the hotels,caravan park owners etc. I've got a few friends who have actually lost interest in the overseas holiday and prefer to poke around in Australia in the caravan. Fair enough

[katie23]

@mendy - you've gotten good at taking food photos. Thanks for the pics & stories. Rock on!

[DrWilly]

Yeah, I’m not biting. Let’s leave Mendy’s threads as apolitical.

[Mendip]

How much was the room in the pub per night?
I need to go London with these 2 in a few weeks for new Thai passports.

I can get a luxury apartment with hot tub for 150 on Air bnb.
A bit late now but you could have probably found a place on there with its own driveway/parking space

I just can't get my head round taking a wife and daughter for a passport renewal trip? I mean, WTF?

Three nights down here cost £525 and I booked up a while ago. While here I extended for an extra day and I'm sure that will cost, but what a day its been... put it this way, the car will be heading back to Somerset 20kg heavier than when we came down.

I've never got in to this AirBnB thing but need to look into it. For our stay in London in a couple of weeks time I've booked 3 nights in the Travelodge on Vauxhall Bridge for (I think) 130 quid a night. Just a walk across the river for all the touristy stuff.

You can tell by the stride that he really just needed a dump.

A Number 1 maybe, but never a Number 2 in the sea when there's families around. I have my standards.

Next Bond maybe?

To be honest you're not the first to make that comparison. The daughter also took a photo of my return trip back up the beach but I'm keeping that for my Only Fans site.

99 flakes, not had on in years

As Bonecollector alluded to, these so called 99s now cost between £3.00 and £3.50, and that's for the standard and not the large. A pair cost around 7 quid, a price I was hoping to pay for a pub meal. Things have certainly changed.

[Reg Dingle]

I just can't get my head round taking a wife and daughter for a passport renewal trip? I mean, WTF?

I've booked 3 nights in the Travelodge on Vauxhall Bridge for (I think) 130 quid a night. Just a walk across the river for all the touristy stuff.

130 quid for a fukkin Travelodge shoebox? I paid 25 last time I stayed in one. It was in Birmingham, mind

Just looking on Airbnb now in Vauxhall, they start at 48 quid a night... and for what youve splurged you could have got a 2 bed luxury flat with enough change for a stroll for 2 on the pier brandishing a flake 99 oyster each

[Joe 90]

Fok that.

Give me Somchai that can just stop in the middle of the road outside a 7 and kill 26 in a big pileup any day of the week.

Even when the parking is free you still have to register your car in the car park on a touch screen tablet as a paying customer or else the eye in the sky will fine you!



Not that there was anything worth buying coz all the fridges had broken with the recent heat.

Oops wrong thread, carry on Mendy..


That price for central london is pretty reasonable for the time of year!
Don't take the car ffs or you'll end up bankrupt!

[Joe 90]

Just looking on Airbnb now in Vauxhall, they start at 48 quid a night... and for what youve splurged you could have got a 2 bed luxury flat

You got a link for that, fancy a london trip myself.

[armstrong]

RE: that Vauxhall Bridge Travelodge. If you're taking a taxi make sure you're VERY clear which Travelodge as it cost me a fucking fortune from the train station and there's another one (not so) nearby which we had to walk to after travelling all the way from BKK.

Luckily my wife was so jetlagged she didn't realise.

[Reg Dingle]

You got a link for that, fancy a london trip myself.

Download the app and sign up.

The other great thing about Airbnb is the self catering side which saves a fortune itself

[Joe 90]

You got a link for that, fancy a london trip myself.

I've just found a 2 bed luxury loft in mayfair with free parking thats cheaper than the travel lodge!!!

[Reg Dingle]

As Eddie would say...

He was fucking fuming

[malmomike77]

^ There always some wanker trying to spoil your party. Ignore them Mendip, its not even 1 hours work for night in the travelodge

[Reg Dingle]

^ He might still have time to cancel that Travelodge..

Robin H
wrote a review 6 Jul
4 contributions

Don't do it.
The only thing good about this hotel is that it was clean.
The bed was so uncomfortable that by 0500 my back was in spasm and my neck was locked in place. The next night I used my jumper as a pillow.
The duvets were so thin we asked for another one which never arrived.
The view from our un-openable window was a concrete wall 3 feet away, and there was only one teabag for the two of us.
Every 30 seconds from 05.00 till midnight the room would rumble and vibrate as the underground train in what felt like the next room passed through.
I would recommend this experience to the SAS for their interrogation training, after two nights here you would admit to anything.
I have never been so pleased to get back to my own bed.
There was a fan heater on the wall which just recirculated the stale air in the room so by morning we were even happy to get outside to breathe in the wonderful diesel fumes that emanated from the major bus stop outside the front door.
And last but certainly not least, how the hell do they manage to make coffee so undrinkable, it tasted burned. It was by far the worst coffee I've ever tasted.

That was one of the better reviews

[Mendip]

^ Exactly. I'm not going all the way to London to stay in to cook meals. And try finding a supermarket in central London!

130 quid for a fukkin Travelodge shoebox? I paid 25 last time I stayed in one. It was in Birmingham, mind

And in 1982

That price for central london is pretty reasonable for the time of year!
Don't take the car ffs or you'll end up bankrupt!

Train tickets already booked... strikes allowing of course.

RE: that Vauxhall Bridge Travelodge. If you're taking a taxi make sure you're VERY clear which Travelodge as it cost me a fucking fortune from the train station and there's another one...

Noted Armstrong and thanks. I'm planning on a Black Cab from Paddington to the Travelodge for the experience. The next day I'm meeting up with a mate who knows how to use the tube trains and stuff.

[Joe 90]

I'm planning on a Black Cab from Paddington to the Travelodge for the experience.

Careful the Cockney wanker doesn't take you via margate for the experience

[DrWilly]

A Number 1 maybe, but never a Number 2 in the sea when there's families around. I have my standards.

You want to be careful doin that, cos the bastard turds will float in seawater…

[Mendip]

^ Yeah, you've gotta watch 'em, geezer.


Yesterday we headed east out of West Bay on the hottest day ever according to the news, although I reckon temperatures were higher in the Cretaceous.

You don't get more English than this... yellow fields with Chesil Beach in the background.





That's St Catherine's Chapel, built by monks in the 14th Century. I very much doubt 'my' house in Korat will still be standing in 700 years time. But what a location. I said to the daughter I'd love to move in there, build a wall around to keep the dogs in and never have a visitor ever again. She wasn't enthusiastic.



I've never used the word 'quintessentially' before, but I think it's correct here. Can you think of a more quintessentially English landscape?





This would have made a third if some b@stard hadn't parked a half container in the view.



We were on our way to the Abbotsbury Swannery (thanks MalmoMike).



After buying tickets we started out on the 400 yard walk to the swannery when I realised I'd left the bottles of water in the car. We've heard a lot about the dangers of such extreme heat in the UK lately and I guess we had around 30 degrees yesterday (Armageddon day) but regardless of all the advice on the telly, coming from Isaan I'm rarely far from a bottle of water. It was hot, so when we arrived at the swannery I told the daughter to wait while I went back to get the water. I walked back the 400 yards to the car, realised that the daughter had the car keys in her bag, tried to call her but realised she has no SIM over here, so walked back again. I'd walked three quarters of a mile before we even started and I still had no water.



Anyway, slightly dehydrated we arrived at the swannery.





The swannery contains the only swans in the country that don't belong to the queen. In 1543 Sir Giles Srangeways brought the swannery from Henry VIII and it's remained in his family ever since.



Some history...



Swans everywhere. The brackish lagoon the swans live in is called The Fleet and the other side of Chesil Beach is the sea.



These are mute swans with an orange bill.



Swans, Canada geese, doves and pigeons.



There are three types of swans at the swannery; the mute swan, the whooping swan and the black swan.



The dirty cream-coloured swan at the right (with a yellow bill) was a whooping swan and he started whooping and drove all the other swans away from us. The two black swans are black swans.



Tranquil...



A little tip for Shutree when taking bird pics... it's all about the timing.

Too early...



Just right!



A swan's wing span.



No problem!



Some picture to get the feel.

Two swans separated...



I wish they allowed fishing...





There was this exhibit showing mines and their deployment during WW2... I guess because they found some off Chesil Beach. These are a main concern at work when we are doing pipeline route surveys. After the outer shell degrades the mines loose their buoyancy and sink to the seabed and are still sat there 80 years later.



On the way back we visited the Swan Maze.



There's apparently a huge egg in the centre but we didn't find it.



But we did find these stocks. I ordered a set to take home... after 15 years of marriage I must admit the sparkle has gone and I reckon a set of stocks in the bedroom may be just what we need to spice things up again.



And that pissed me off... never realised I was thinning on top.



Thomas Hardy, eat your heart out.



Lunch before we left...



I asked for a swan burger but it didn't go down well... so two pasties it was. Another box ticked.



A couple more Thomas Hardyesque pictures...





While London was burning late afternoon, we had haze and light drizzle...



... but not too heavy to spoil a couple of 350s!



And dinner... haddock and chips... with peas!



Money...



Another lovely Dorset day.

[DrWilly]

Very picturesque. That fish n chips and peas looks perfect!


You’re having a laff calling that a bit of thinning…

[PAG]

Looks a great day out.

"But we did find these stocks. I ordered a set to take home... after 15 years of marriage I must admit the sparkle has gone and I reckon a set of stocks in the bedroom may be just what we need to spice things up again."

[Joe 90]

Nice pics Mendip!

Last time I saw some stocks, Troy ended up in them posing after 6 pints of Theakstones

Need to get yourself some clippers and go number one all over and hide that sunroof.

Tried any decent ales yet?

Loads of varieties and very reasonably priced here.

[happynz]

never realised I was thinning on top.

Go for what apparently is called "The Power Donut".